USELESS INFO

 ~  Irish surnames had an original significance.  "O" meant grandson of; "Mac" meant son of.


~  Catoptrophobia is the fear of mirrors.

~  Miss Piggy's full name was Miss Piggy Lee, in humor and tribute to singer Peggy Lee.  The Lee in Miss Piggy's name was used only once on the show.  It was dropped to avoid upsetting Peggy Lee.

~  The name polka dots dates back to the mid to late 19th century, when the dance, the polka, was popular, and businessmen attempted to cash in on the craze by adding "polka" to the names of all sorts of products, ranging from socks, hats, and curtains to dotted fabrics.  The latter outlived the fad, and the rest disappeared.

~  Uranus, because of its unusual (almost 90-degree) tilt as it orbits the sun, experiences 42 earth years of constant summer followed by 42 earth years of dark winter.

MR. ROOTER, MR. JIMMY, MR. ELECTRIC AND MR. ROOTER AGAIN

I was running out of hot water.  It started Friday morning.  Halfway through my shower I was freezing.  I told Jimmy about it when I got to work.  We both figured that one of my elements needed to be replaced.  I left work a little early (2:00) which wasn't hard since it was Friday and a beautiful day. 

Upon arriving home, I placed a call to Mr. Rooter asking them to please send someone out there to check my hot water heater.  I have always trusted Mr. Rooter with all of my plumbing needs.  The service has always been quick and affordable.  Then, on Friday, they sent some yahoo who didn't know what the hell he was doing.  He was telling me it wasn't a water heater problem, it was an electrical problem because the water heater kept blowing fuses (yes, my house it still on fuses).  Well heck, I don't know about these things, so I said ok and he left without charging me anything.

Jimmy came over Saturday to asses the situation.  He called Mr. Rooter to see why they didn't have someone familiar with electricity to come and look at an electric water heater.  After getting frustrated with them I suggested "Let's just call an electrician."  We did...Mr. Electric (Chris)...and he came at a cost of $150.00 because it was Saturday.  He was a nice guy, and proceeded to tell us that the fuses keep blowing because the element is out (or grounded).  The plumber should have just fixed it last night instead of trying to diagnose a problem that he obviously knew nothing about.

So I called Mr. Rooter back asking them to please send someone back out here - my element was out - and it should have been fixed yesterday when they were here saving me $150 I paid Mr. Electric.  Now, get this, the plumber (can I even call him that) from Friday called me and asked had I gotten the electrical problem solved.  I just handed the phone to Jimmy and let him "tell" Mr. Rooter he was a dumb a**. 

To make a long story (kinda) short, they Mr. Rooter sent a real plumber (David) who replaced the element at no cost to me because the not real plumber (Drew) didn't know what he was doing.  We could tell that this was not the first time good plumber had come behind cleaning up bad plumber's mess.

Lessons learned:  I will still continue to use Mr. Rooter, I will just tell them never to send Drew....I highly recommend Mr. Electric for any of your electrical needs...and (as Mr. Jimmy wrote) "Chris = Good" "David = Good" "Drew = Bad."

SOUTHERN FRIED SURVIVOR

Got a great e-mail from Btut about Survivor last night....thought I could use it as a guest blog...Yes, I am a cheap date!  Thanks Btut - Pink Panties Rule!

Good morning!


Of course, I had to come home from cards and watch Survivor! I was just dying to text LL during the whole thing, but my phone was charging, and it was late. So, I made some notes! Please remember that this is only the second season I've been watching, so my thoughts and observations might be off, but, oh well. I am also sending these to you before stalking Jeff Probst's blog and the blog on EW.com. I hope you enjoy!

Boston Rob called Phil's underwear, "pink panties!" I thought I would die! Too funny!


I love how when Phil is talking, they put up his name and then Former Federal Agent? A couple of episodes before I thought there was a question mark, but saw it again last night for sure.


Matt is kicking some redemption ass. Might it be time to bring him back to camp?


Andrea & Phillip just might be smart. (but he's still annoying in his pink panties!)


I love the frog that they kept showing last night, in between stuff. It's cool lookin!


Ralph is OMG backwoods redneck! I mean, I already knew this, but there were a couple of things he said last night that made me really say, Wow!


Boston Rob is GOOD! Fantastic move with switching the clues! "You gotta hustle if you wanna make a dolla!"


How did Mike get gel in his hair? At one point near the end, his hair was all fixed & there was a part of it that was all gelled up! Really?!


Did Ralph fray the sleeves of his shirt that he wore to Tribal Council? He really doesn't have to try and look backwoods. All he has to do is open his mouth!


You can always tell who Ralph votes for, because his backwoods, redneck ass doesn't know how to spell!


Well, that's all I got. Not much on game-play but I was more into people watchin' last night. I do think it's amazing how things can flip so quickly!


Hope you have a great Thursday!


I love me some Boston Rob!

I hope you all have a great Thursday too!

CRAZY WEEK

Hey all - It has been one crazy week...and it is just Wednesday!  Please be patient with my lack of blog content...I have been working late and just exhausted once I get home. 

News from the Pennylane:

1.  Rayray is in Colorado visiting the J Man and I miss her sooooo much!
2.  Had a great time at Khef's (pronounced Chef's - you all know why I had to insert the K for a C!) birthday - what with all the trees burning, great pizza, red velvet cake by Miss Sweephay herself, red red wine and great company like TCW, Wino Bill, Btut, the Right Wrights, the Big Dawes, and Andy AndyRandy - who wouldn't have a great time.
3.  I just took my Mom a print out on Folic Acid deficiency - let the symptoms begin!
4.  Fixing to relax and watch Survivor (who would be crazy enough to DVR it and watch it later?) and then Modern Family - two of my favorite shows!

USELESS INFO TUESDAY

~  Flamboyant All-Start pitcher Dock Ellis wore curlers in his hair during pregame drills during the 1973 baseball season because they helped him throw illegal spitballs.  he used them to straighten the hair behind his head, enabling sweat to drip down and provide moisture for the banned pitch.

~  The letters C, D, E, F, L, O, P, T and Z are traditionally used on Snellen eye exam charts.

~  Indonesia is home to the world's largest active gold mine.  It's Grasberg mine is located in Tembagapura, in Irian Jaya province, on the western half of the island of New Guinea.

~  In 2005, Halle Berry accepted a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress while clutching her previously won Best Actress Oscar.  The Razzie was for "Catwoman" (2004) and the Oscar was for "Monster's Ball" (2001).

~  An osteoblast is a cell in the human body that makes bone.

RAYRAY HAS A FEELAPHOBIA...

...She can't stand to touch....wait for it....dry dog or cat food!

Isn't that the funniest thing you have ever heard.  On the rare occasions in which she does feed Spike or Sally, she will pick up their bowl, dip it in the bag, and scoop up the food with the bowl.  What is even weirder is that she will touch a milk bone dog biscuit.  I mean, really, what's the difference?

When she sees me just stick my hand in the bag and grab some food, she is like "that is so gross."  I reply "what are you going to do when you have a pet of your own?"  Rayray "I am sure as h*ll not going to touch it with my hand!"

I see problems for her children!

Love you boo!  I am going to miss you!  (tear)

REMEMBER, TODAY IS ASH WEDENSDAY...

...so if you see someone with a smudge on their forehead don't tell them they have something on it!  

The following excerpt is from Wikipedia:

Ash Wednesday, according to Christian tradition, in the Western Christian calendar, is the first day of Lent and occurs 46 days (40 days not counting Sundays) before Easter. It is a moveable fast, falling on a different date each year because it is dependent on the date of Easter. It can occur as early as February 4 or as late as March 10.



Ash Wednesday derives its name from the practice of placing ashes on the foreheads of adherents as a sign of mourning and repentance to God. The ashes used are typically gathered after the palms or Palm Crosses from the previous year's Palm Sunday are burned. After the ceremonial burning of the remains of the palms, the ash is mixed with a small amount of water to create a more adhesive substance.


This practice is common in much of Christendom, being celebrated by Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians, and Anglicans.

At Masses and services of worship on this day, ashes are imposed on the foreheads of the faithful (or on the tonsure spots, in the case of some clergy). The priest, minister, or in some cases officiating layperson, marks the forehead of each participant with black ashes in the shape of a cross, which the worshipper traditionally retains until it wears off. The act echoes the ancient Near Eastern tradition of throwing ashes over one's head to signify repentance before God (as related in the Bible).